What is Discord? It’s one of the largest chat apps, initially created for gamers in 2015 by Jason Citron and Stanislav Vishnevskiy. The platform’s founders, who grew up in the late 80s and early 90s, were avid video game enthusiasts and valued the connections made through gaming.

Originating from the video game developer Hammer & Chisel, Discord initially launched as a multiplayer game. While the gaming community wasn’t particularly excited about the game itself, they embraced its messaging and communication features. Taking users’ feedback into account, the developers decided to pivot and focus on these aspects. This shift led to the creation of Discord as we know it today.

Since its launch in 2015, Discord has attracted over 250 million users worldwide, with 14 million daily active users, according to the company. Interestingly, not many of these users are gamers anymore—only about 20%, as reported. We’ll explore this further in the later sections of the article.

Many people worldwide appreciate Discord for its high level of anonymity compared to other chat apps like Slack. Nevertheless, sharing your private phone number remains a requirement for registering a Discord account. So, how can we truly talk about anonymity if the platform has your phone number, potentially giving access to other user data? This remains a significant concern.

Let’s delve into this issue in today’s post. We’ll explore how Discord differs from other chat applications and learn how to protect your sensitive data by using virtual phone numbers from PVAPins for phone number verification.

Review and Comparison of Discord.

What sets Discord apart is its ability to create both channels and separate servers, each containing multiple channels on various topics. These can be either private or public. Thanks to its versatile functionality, Discord is an ideal platform for building a community, much like Reddit.

Many people love Discord not only for its intended anonymity, which we will discuss later, but also because it brings together many elements of the early Internet. Discord’s anonymous usernames are reminiscent of the AOL service, while its cozy atmosphere for hanging out with friends and sharing random stuff is reminiscent of Myspace.

In terms of its audience, Discord’s user base extends beyond gamers. It has become a hub for enthusiasts of various interests, from comic book lovers to individuals seeking educational and networking opportunities. Additionally, unlike Slack, which is often mentioned alongside Discord in discussions, it is not primarily used for work communication, although it is still utilized for this purpose.

Advantages and Features of Discord.

For a standard user, Discord provides a variety of features, including:

• Voice and text communication.
• Video calls and conferencing.
• Free file sharing up to 3 MB.
• Link sharing in both public and private channels.
• Screen sharing, with or without sound.
• Streamer mode, which enables you to hide all your private data while streaming.

Premium mode, available through the in-app service Nitro, offers enhanced features like increased upload capacity, animated avatars and emojis, and customizable profile pictures.

To determine whether you’re prepared to create a Discord account, let’s assess the pros and cons of the application.

Advantages.

• The platform delivers high-quality sound and video using a specialized Opus codec with built-in noise and echo suppression, along with automatic gain control for sound quality. Additionally, it utilizes the VP8 codec for stable image transmission.

• The interface is straightforward, allowing users to effortlessly create private servers and channels, add or remove members, and assign special roles with minimal effort.

• Helpful bots are available on the platform, featuring a wide range of official options with specified properties and functions. Additionally, users have the flexibility to create their own bots tailored to address specific needs.

Typically, server administrators employ digital assistants to streamline their tasks, which may involve managing roles, presenting player statistics, locating music content, and more.

Drawbacks.

• There are often interruptions when transferring large files. Discord’s capacity for storing and transferring multimedia content is somewhat restricted.
• The absence of a video recording function enhances the security of sensitive data, albeit at the expense of communication capabilities in certain contexts.

Now that we’ve explored the features Discord provides to its users, let’s delve into the topic of anonymity within the platform.

Privacy and Anonymity in Discord.

Discord’s stance on anonymity and user privacy raises questions among users. While many perceive it as one of the safest and most anonymous messaging platforms online, it lacks end-to-end encryption. Casual Discord users on YouTube suggest that the app is secure as long as it’s used exclusively with known friends or with a clear understanding of navigating its features safely. Additionally, the preferred method for near-private conversations on Discord appears to be through voice chat.

Similar to other platforms with a large user base, Discord is also known for collecting basic usage statistics. To view these statistics, navigate to your Discord settings and access the “Privacy & Safety” section. Here, you’ll find options that enable the platform to collect this data. At the bottom of the section, there’s a button that allows you to request an email containing all the information Discord has gathered about you. This includes details such as your friends, settings, username, email, transaction history, every message you’ve sent (including direct messages), servers you are part of, your app navigation patterns, and the games you play.

Thus, claiming that Discord offers complete privacy is somewhat inaccurate, as it may grant third parties access to certain portions of your data.

Is registering and using Discord safe?

While a truly private system like Signal, Telegram, or Element (which is closest to Discord) is End-to-End Encrypted, it doesn’t mean you have to forgo Discord as a messaging platform. Discord offers numerous useful and even unique features for fulfilling communication needs.

Exercise caution to avoid falling victim to scammers who often send deceptive links and other malicious content.

Furthermore, to enhance your data security, there’s no need to furnish your personal phone number for Discord registration. Instead, opt for a disposable phone number, which functions similarly to a regular cell phone, enabling receipt of an SMS message for account verification.

How to create a Discord account using Afghanistan virtual phone number.

PVAPins  is a top-tier platform offering virtual number services tailored for SMS verification. Renowned in the industry, it stands out for furnishing temporary numbers essential for diverse purposes, including account registrations across online services.

Below are the detailed steps:

1️⃣ Sign up on pvapins.com using your email address.

2️⃣ Deposit money into your account.

3️⃣ Select the “Discord” service and pick your country (Afghanistan).

4️⃣ Copy the virtual phone number provided.

5️⃣ Use the virtual number during the Discord registration process.

6️⃣ Refresh the PVAPins page to receive the verification code.

7️⃣ Input the code to complete your registration.